Another Jewel in UL’s Crown as Boathouse Opens - By Finn McDuffie

published on Sep 22nd, 2009

AFTER 12 years of development, the UL Boathouse will be officially opened at the end of this month.

Martin Cullen, Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, will mark the opening, which is expected to draw large crowds of students, University staff, locals and parties involved in the project’s development. The event, which takes place at the Boathouse on 30 September, will run a series of interactive displays, organised by some of UL’s clubs and societies. Live music will be provided by the Delorentos and The Blizzards. Interactive opportunities include kayaking on the river Shannon and diving in UL Sub Aqua’s try-a-dive tank, which was sourced in Scotland. UL’s mountain bikers, archers and games society will also perform displays. Skydive UL are expected to ‘do a drop’ nearby, weather permitting. The showcase is being organised by the Boathouse Management Committee, comprised of Arena representatives, the University and the Students’ Union.

The event is a celebration of the years of hard work that have gone into the Boathouse project. The impetus for the project came from Colin Byrne in 1998 and was carried on ever since by UL’s Clubs and Societies Development Officer, Paul Lee among others. Mr. Byrne, then President of the UL Rowing club, approached Mr. Lee, with a demand for a storage facility. The SU general manager, Ger Barry, felt £10,000 a year would allow the construction of a simple breeze-block structure. It never transpired and in the following years, the Rowing club suffered massive damage in the form of arson and vandalism. The cost of the damage amounted to £15,000. The Kayak club later lost its storage prefabs to University development and relocated to the PESS building.

As the SU began to invest heavily in boats and club equipment, the need for a secure storage environment became vital. Storage containers were proposed but the idea was scrapped on aesthetic grounds. Dr. Ed Walsh, then President of UL, accepted a Boathouse was possible on the condition that it met the exacting high standards of the University. In 2001 discussions with the University Foundation, UL’s fund-raising charity led to an application to the University for consideration of a Boathouse. At the time, the University was still developing its academic infrastructure and the application was rejected.

But following further meetings involving Mr. John O’Connor, then University Vice-President of Finance (VPF), the University agreed to donate a parcel of land to the SU for a boathouse. Funding would need to be sourced elsewhere. The information was relayed to the Clubs and Societies Council of the day and was met positively. On foot of this, the SU drafted a proposal based on a 10 year projection of developed club requirements.

The Rowing club had also requested a rowing tank for training. The tank was seen as an integral part of the club’s development. There was no such tank in Ireland at the time. American Consultant and President of Still Water Designs, Dick Perelli, was chosen as the tank’s designer. But a large amount of specific data and design features came from UL students Darragh Cronin and Rosamund Healy who were very familiar with still-water situations and sought a tailored design.

A preliminary costing was drafted. The initial figure was €4.1 million. At the same time, VPF O’Connor sought to know who else might benefit from the boathouse. The Sub Aqua and Mountain biking clubs put forward storage requirements. This drove the concept design and in 2003, the SU went to a referendum on the construction of the boathouse. It was passed by just under 2,800 students.

The referendum asked students if they were willing to extend the mortgage of the SU building by eight years. This secured the €4.1 million estimate. Some cost over-runs led to the final figure being €5.1 million. So the SU struck a deal with the University whereby 80% of the additional €1 million would be covered by the University. The other €200,000 was sourced from student levy and paid by the SU. The mortgage on the SU building ends in 2014.

Following the referendum, the SU and the University formed a Memorandum of Understanding. This was the legal framework by which the SU was to proceed with the project as clients and associates of the University. Tenders and interviews provided the necessary expertise and numerous consultations took place on aspects of planning, derogation and special areas of conservation.

The boathouse is a special asset to the University and to Ireland. “The rowing tank sets it apart,” says Paul Lee. “It’s the first powered rowing tank in the country and it’s the first US-designed model in Europe that we’re aware of.” The tank cost in excess of a quarter of a million Euros.

“It’s a state of the art facility, the first project of its kind completed by students, for students,” says SU President Ruan Dillon McLaughlin. The Boathouse is located on campus, on the edge of the river Shannon. The opening ceremony begins at 12pm and ends at 4pm.

 The writer would like to thank Paul Lee, Patricia Moriarty and Ruan Dillon McLaughlin for their contributions to this piece.